• We predicted Obamamania spawning “yes we can” ad campaigns and a surge in sales of political T-shirts, but we didn’t foresee it giving the restaurant industry a boost. The Obama Café is set to open its doors at Greenwood and Danforth this week. [National Post]

• It hurt at the time, but Torontonians can now consider themselves lucky to have lost Virgin Atlantic’s direct flight to London. The inflight meals are unpalatable, at least according to one passenger’s hilariously detailed letter of complaint to Richard Branson. [The Telegraph]

• With a payout of $27 million, Maple Leaf Foods settles the class action suit brought against it by those who contracted listeriosis from the company’s processed meats—that’s $750 to $125,000 per victim. [Globe and Mail]

• Toronto isn’t alone in its artisanal charcuterie obsession. Stores north and south of the 49th parallel—including Yorkville’s Whole Foods—are benefiting from an Iowa couple’s attempt to break from the Italian tradition of prosciutto production. [New York Times]

• This year’s Taste of Ontario is in the hands of a teenager. Nineteen-year-old wunderkind Dylan McLay is making the trip from St. Catharines to feed over 250 guests this week as the unofficial ambassador for Niagara cuisine. [The Standard]